Your Corner Wrench: 5 tips to keep your battery healthy

A CAA Manitoba technician prepares to boost a battery at a member's home in West Kildonan.

Kevin King, Winnipeg Sun

Murphy’s Law dictates: If you’re going to get stuck with a dead battery, it will be at the most inconvenient time and location

by
Brian Turner | December 13, 2016

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That dreaded click-click-click of a dead battery on a frosty morning has to be the worst sound a car owner can hear. It means waiting for roadside assistance or a friendly auto-knowledgeable neighbour with booster cables, and either way you know you’ll be late for work and your day’s plans are shot. The real tragedy with this scenario is that it’s completely avoidable, and with a little effort it’s easy to breeze through even the coldest winters with sure reliable start-ups every morning.

Get it tested

If the battery in your ride has been through any more than four winters, a simple load test is a great way to find out if it will make it through another. Most shops offer this service at little cost and sometimes even free when combined with any seasonal service. A battery load tester will apply an electrical draw on the battery while measuring its ability to provide enough volts at the correct amperage to start your vehicle. Then you can make the right decision on whether or not to replace it or keep going. Remember, Murphy’s Law dictates that if you’re going to get stuck with a dead battery, it will likely be at the most inconvenient time and location.

Keep it warm

If your vehicle’s battery didn’t come with a factory cover or insulated wrap and it’s out in the open under the hood, consider buying a battery blanket. They don’t have to be the plug-in electric type and they’re relatively cheap and easy to install.

Avoid the short, slow runs

When it’s extremely frosty (say, below -25° C), a series of short, slow, stop-and-start runs can kill even the best battery on the market. Every time you start your vehicle’s engine it drains the battery of power, and with low temps, the charging system can take longer to bring the battery back to full reserve energy. Combine this with an excessive electrical demand from lights, wipers, heaters and defrosters, and you have a great recipe for battery à la mort.

If you absolutely have to take a quick run on a bitter day, make sure the engine gets up to full temperature and be conservative on your use of electrical accessories and systems. If you’re stuck in particularly slow traffic with the need to keep wipers, lights and heaters on, drop your transmission (manual or automatic) down a gear to keep the engine speed a little higher. As the vehicle’s charging unit (alternator) is belt driven, its power output is entirely dependent on engine speed.

Give your battery a chance

If your commute home has been particularly cold and slow with the need for a lot of electricity for various vehicle systems, for the last few kilometres reduce the electrical demand by turning the heater fan down to minimum and the defroster off altogether. Not only will this let the charging system provide peak power to the battery, it can help prevent interior glass from frosting overnight as it will let the floor moisture cool down (if you turn the temp control down with the fan speed).

Plug it in!

If your vehicle came with a block heater, use it. It’s as simple as that. Forget the myths that block heaters only get your engine accustomed to their continual use. When the temps dip below -20° C, a few hours of block heater time can give your engine and battery the best chance for a sure morning start. And you can enjoy the added benefits of quicker heat from the cabin HVAC system and less fuel consumption.